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LA MIOTTE V1 UNITED STATES

substance, as follows: That the said defendants will. solicit various incol-potent Osage Indians to execute a lease upon lands allotted to them, whichsaid leases are not in the form prescribed by'the Secretary of the Interior, butare informal, in that they do not comply with the provisions of Exhibit A[forml of lease required b3. the Department]. That the defendants will con-tiniue to procure as nany lew'es from as many allottebs within a certain pre-scribed ale until said defeallut have, under the guise of said leases, ob-tained in their own name. or ut the name of the, person whom they represent,a bod) of laud uhi(h the) cause to be inclosed with fence, and denominate thesame a 'pasture'; that this 'pature' is then leased, or subleased, or con-tracted, to the person, firm, or corporation desiring the use of the same tograze cattle thereon and for agricultural purposes. That the said defendantscharge said persons, firms, or corporations a large sum of monyv, and placesaid persons, firms, or corporations in possession of said land. and thereaftersaid lands are used by said persons, firms, or corporations, for grazing pur-poses and for agricultural purposes, the said defendants guaranteeing tosaid persons, firms, or corporations that they will pay all trespass money andall rentals, and that the defendants will assume all liability to the said per-sons, firms, or corporations that may be occasioned by the use and occupancyof the said lands as aforesaid; that it is not the intention, nor the customof said defendants, to have said leases, so procured from said incompetentOsage Indians, signed, subscribed and sworn to before an officer of the OsageIndian Agency; neither is it the intention nor the custom to submit saidleases to the Secretary of the Interlo for his consent and approval; but that,on the contrary, immediately after the procurement of said leases as afore-said, the said defendants, for a sum stated, proceed to place the person, firm,or corporation [designing] to use the said land, in possession."The plaintiff alleges that the defendants have, by the aforesaid manner andmeans, acquired informal leases from incompetent Osage Indians to theamount of approximately 25,000 acres of land. the exact number of which theplaintiff is unable to ascertain, but alleges that it is informed and believesthat the number of acres so acquired will far exceed the amount of 25,000acres. The plaintiff alleges that, for a number of years past, the defend-ants have procured, by the manner and means aforesaid, 'pastures' for H. M.Stonebreaker, T. P. Kyger, Lee Russell, Brown & Elliugwood, a partnership, R.H. Chowing, Thompson & Shipman, a partnership, Ross Heaton, and diversother persons, and have placed said persons and firms in possession, and haveused and occupied lands belonging to incompetent Osage Indian allottees, foragricultural purposes and for grazing cattle, without complying with therules and regulations of the Secretary of the Interior, as above set out, andwithout the knowledge or consent of the Secretary of the Interior, and thatthe defendants have established themselves in a permanent business conductedin the aforesaid manner, and are at the present time procuring, and will con-tinue to procure, leases as aforesaid, for persons, firms, and corporations forthe aforesaid purposes."The bill also particularizes as to 26 described pieces of property sotreated by them.The answer admits the leasing of "lands in Osage County fromOsage Indians and other people for grazing and agricultural pur-poses." It further says that it leases large bodies of land for grazingpurposes adjacent to lands belonging to noncompetent Osage Indiansand "that in order to lease their own lands * * * to cattle menwho desire and demand large acreage, it is necessary for them toagree with such cattle men that they will protect and guarantee themfrom damages by reason of trespass upon such Indian lands. Thesedefendants deny that they take possession of such lands or that theydeliver possession to their own lessee of the same, but merely holdthemselves liable for any trespass money that may be due on account